TEQSA Information Sheet:
eLearning and compliance with
the Threshold Standards
The delivery of higher education courses
happens through a range of means, including
face-to-face delivery, multimedia, video and
online conferencing tools, podcasting lectures
and ‘online only’ courses. When designed
effectively, eLearning is recognised for its
potential to enhance learning and to increase
student accessibility to higher education.
This TEQSA Information Sheet explains TEQSA’s
approach to the regulation of higher education
providers engaged in online delivery.
Regulation of eLearning
in higher education
Under the Tertiary Education Quality and
Standards Act 2011 (‘TEQSA Act’), TEQSA
regulates higher education providers offering
a higher education award (from a diploma up
to a doctoral degree) for the completion of an
Australian course of study. This includes where
online delivery is part of the course of study
leading to a higher education award.
The TEQSA Act supports multiple means
through which higher education can be
delivered. Providers are required to demonstrate
that outcomes for students will be achieved,
whatever the chosen method of delivery.
MOOCs
The use of a MOOC as a mode of delivery will
be assessed by TEQSA within the context of the
provider’s overall approach to creating a sound
learning environment. The evidence supplied
by providers to demonstrate compliance may
be different to other delivery modes, but the
standards remain constant.
TEQSA’s remit does not extend to MOOCs
which are not linked to regulated higher
education awards. The approach to MOOCs in
these circumstances is a matter for individual
providers.
Where, however, a provider recognises any
part of a MOOC as giving credit or advanced
standing towards a regulated Australian higher
education award, then it is directly relevant for
TEQSA, as it relates to the provider’s admissions
and credit policies and practice and whether the
Threshold Standards are being met. Many of
these arrangements for recognising prior learning
exist, and it is incumbent on providers to ensure
that quality assurance exists for this type of
credit as for any other.
In the re-registration or course accreditation
process, TEQSA will also apply its regulatory
principles when assessing a provider’s use of
MOOCs in a course of study. For example, the
extent to which TEQSA is likely to take an active
interest in a particular arrangement of this kind
may depend on the number and proportion of
students admitted and the proportion of credit
awarded.
Depending on how a MOOC is structured in
relation to a provider’s delivery of courses,
aspects of the Threshold Standards relating to
third parties may also apply.
TEQSA’s assessment
of risk
TEQSA takes an evidence and risk-based
approach to determining whether a provider is
likely to remain compliant with the Threshold
Standards. Issues in relation to online delivery
models that may be examined by TEQSA include
(but are not limited to):
curriculum development and pedagogical
approach appropriate to eLearning
student support (including implications for
first year experience of students)
capacity to monitor progression and
completion rates
staff support and development; and
Innovation and the
future of Australian
higher education
TEQSA strongly encourages initiatives within the
sector to improve the quality of the student’s
experience of higher education, whether this is
through more diverse content or the creation of
more effective and accessible modes of delivery.
Regulation by TEQSA supports the
development of Australian higher education
and its international competitiveness. A student
undertaking online learning experiences with a
provider registered with TEQSA will be assured
of its quality. This gives registered Australian
providers a key advantage over unaccredited
providers in other countries.
cheating and plagiarism policies and
procedures.
As with all its regulatory decision-making,
TEQSA makes judgments that take a provider’s
operational circumstances into account. If a
provider offers education predominantly online,
TEQSA may see little need to focus on the
provider’s capacity to offer a physical library
facility on campus but will focus instead on other
aspects related to an online context.
Assessment houses
Internationally, there has been an emergence
of ‘assessment houses’. These organisations
typically focus entirely on providing an
assessment service and awarding a qualification,
rather than the offering and delivery of courses.
Due to the current Registration and Course
Accreditation standards, it is highly unlikely
for an assessment house to be registered in
Australia under the TEQSA Act.
March 2013
Any provider that has any questions in
relation to the matters covered in this
Information Sheet is encouraged to
contact their Case Manager.
Providers without self-accrediting
authority should consider whether
changes to accredited courses would
require the submission of a material
change notification to TEQSA.